Student Teaching

The culminating activity of the teacher education programs is student teaching. Having satisfied the prerequisites for student teaching courses, candidates are assigned to placements or classrooms in public schools for the first or second semester of their senior year.

They are placed based on the availability of qualified cooperating teachers in their subject area and the willingness of schools to affiliate with BU (schools used to date).

A student teaching semester is designed to ensure students have a variety of experiences. Eligibility for student teaching will be determined during the scheduling period prior to the student teaching semester. Student teaching eligibility is contingent upon:

Completion of the admission to teacher education process

Possession of an overall cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher

A grade of C or better in all professional education and specialty courses, and appropriate methods courses specified by each teacher education certification program. (The grade of C- (minus) does not meet this criterion)

Continuation of professional liability insurance. The policy shall be a minimum of $1,000,000 per claim and $3,000,000 aggregate. This policy must remain in full force and effect for the duration of the practicum or student teaching assignment

To assess competency in student teaching, all teacher education candidates must have:

Written evaluations by cooperating teachers

Written evaluations by univeristy supervisors

Grades of C or better (The grade of C- (minus) does not satisfy this criterion)

Two evaluations during student teaching using the PDE430 form: Pennsylvania Statewide Evaluation Form for Student Professional Knowledge and Practice, with satisfactory or above ratings

Teacher education students may not complete student teaching in any school district they attended. Business education and special education student teaching assignments are located within an approximate 50-mile radius of Bloomsburg. The majority of student teachers in early childhood, elementary, and secondary education programs are placed within a 35-mile radius of BU, with some placed in Lehigh, Bucks, and Montgomery county areas and the School District of Philadelphia. As per affiliation agreements, the school district will provide a cooperating teacher who must meet the following criteria, as defined by the Pennsylvania Department of Education:

At least three years of teaching experience, one year of which has been in the district to which the teacher candidate is assigned

A teaching assignment appropriate to the teacher candidate's area of certification

Completion of cooperating teacher education, which includes review of the Student Teaching Handbook and attendance at cooperating teacher workshops. For students who are in the MS in Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing program, please review the DHOH Student Teaching Handbook.

STEM camps leave lasting impression

Handmade catapults, balloon shooters and hurricane-proof structures were among the many creations taking centerstage at Bloomsburg University’s annual STEM Adventure Camps this summer. Nearly 1,000 students from four area schools converged on campus for a week of exploring ways to grow their science, technical, engineering and math interests and abilities.

“Getting to see that ‘ah-ha!’ moment — seeing the smiles and laughs when singing songs — or just laughing at me because I said something goofy was what really made me realize why I do this,” said Carolann Green, a senior early childhood education major. “I’ve found the career that brings out the best of me.”

“Some of my favorite highlights were getting to work hands-on with students and getting to see how excited they were to be on a college campus,” Sacher said. “Many of them told me how they want to come here when they get older, which showed me how enthusiastic they were for the STEM camp and just for learning in general!”